Page 21 of Mouth to Mouth

Okay, so he probably shouldn’t have sucked Luca off the previous night. Brad absolutely shouldn’t have helped Luca re-dress and close the coffee shop then walked him upstairs to the apartment above the shop. And it was beyond dumb of him to have kissed Luca again before leaving him standing at the closed front door.

Mixed signals? Yeah, Brad had thrown those all over the place. He truly didn’t know what he’d been doing. Alright, that was a lie. Brad just couldn’t help himself. He’d wanted Luca. Wanted Luca bad enough that he’d thrown all his rules and promises to himself out the window.

“Hey, man! Are you doing okay? You’ve been quiet today.”

Turning, Brad caught the water bottle that Josh tossed him. Twisting the top off gave him time to think about the question. Or more accurately taking the time to avoid blurting out the truth. Brad knew that he could talk to Josh yet was hesitant to do so. He liked having something with Luca all for himself. “Fine.” He remembered to reply.

Josh shook his head with narrowed eyes filled with suspicion. “Is the heat getting to you? We still have a couple more hours to go.”

They’d done their time on boat patrol and now were stationed around the surfing contestant tents back on the sand. The ambulance was parked in the parking lot but they’d been given a city ATV to be closer to the crowd in case help was needed. Only a few hours remained of Brad’s first shift on this chaotic weekend. He finally understood why everyone had been warning him.

Being on the boat hadn’t been so bad. Brad didn’t mind watching from a distance as the beach filled to near capacity. And he’d never seen an organized surfing event in real life. He’d needed to keep his attention on the people in the water. There were camera men, safety personnel, and the surfers all out deep in the ocean and it was Brad’s job to protect them. To make sure no one was lost among the massive and huge waves. So why was Brad only interested in finding one lone figure? Only one dark-haired man held Brad’s attention. And Brad was impressed. Extremely impressed because Luca could surf. No, that wasn’t the right description. Luca didn’t just ride the waves. Luca commanded the waves. A god in the ocean.

Brad already thought Luca was hot but seeing him today had Brad’s cock hard and thick, wanting to come out and play.

He caught himself snorting and shook his head. Brad needed to get his shit together. Luca was just one man or, more accurately, boy. Plenty of others out there that Brad could hook up with. Even if Luca was the one that Brad truly wanted.

“If you need a break—” Josh offered.

“No, I’m good,” Brad assured his work partner. “Still shocked at all of this.” He waved his hand around.

Josh downed half his bottle of water before wiping his mouth. “I did try to warn you.”

“I know. I know.”

Leaning against the ATV, Josh grinned. “It might be pure chaos but we get one hell of a view.”

Following Josh’s gaze to a group of men playing beach volleyball in the smallest swim trunks possible, Brad chuckled. His friend wasn’t wrong. “Not going to argue with you.”

Josh gave a wolfish grin. “Someone catch your eye?”

Brad very purposely did not look behind him where the surfers rested between rounds. “Nah, man. I’ve got enough on my plate trying to finish my certifications.”

“You got that, man,” Josh told him. “You’ll be one of the most valuable and trained guys in the entire state soon.”

Relief and pride filled Brad at Josh’s sure tone. Intellectually Brad knew it was the truth but that little niggle of doubt that lived inside him was always there.

“Now you’ll have to decide where you want to finally settle down,” Josh said, voice low but filled with curiosity.

Snapping his head around, Brad frowned at his friend. “What do you mean?”

The look that Josh sent him wasn’t one that Brad had seen before. Brad shuffled closer.

“Don’t treat me like an idiot,” Josh snapped.

“I’m not,” Brad replied. He was confused.

“There has been rumors since you’ve arrived. With this final certification, your abilities, and overall willingness to overwork yourself, every department in the state is fighting for you. The offers will flood in as soon as the paperwork is complete.”

Brad wasn’t an idiot either. He’d heard the same rumors. Been told that by the people that helped Brad get to where he was. “Oh.”

“Sorry.” Josh hunched his shoulders forward. “I don’t mean to be an asshole.”

“You haven’t been.”

“Whatever you need, man.” Smacking his shoulder, Josh then squeezed. “Wherever you want to go. It’s for selfish reasons that I want you to stay. But I’ve got your back whatever you decide.”

“You want me to stay?” Why did that make Brad’s heart thump faster? Make him smile.